Ode to Canada
As Canadians we have a good reputation around the world and are viewed as accommodating. A strength to be sure but isn’t it time to individually and collectively be our personal best and stop settling for second best. Recently I heard Brian Williams speak at the BEDC Entrepreneur of the Year award and he talked about “the winds of change” he witnessed firsthand at the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Brian noted the changes he began to see before the games and an interview with skier Jennifer Heil, a gold medalist 4 years earlier in Turin. She said “for Canadians it’s not just enough to show up anymore, we’re better than that”.
We live in a country filled with natural beauty and numerous resources. We are a diverse mix of people with multiple skills and talents. It’s time to rise to the occasion and bring our passion to the forefront. We can do it as individuals and while that is a part of it, the real magic comes in collectively pulling together. It’s time to stop waiting in the background for the government to do something, or the economy to get better. It’s time to find ways to make a difference and then quietly or not so quietly go about doing just that.
So I’m putting my money where my mouth is and sharing with you my vision (that I am actively working towards each day). My vision is though collaboration, every workplace in Canada (heck North America and the world) will be a place where:
People can be their personal best
Align to a shared purpose
Find solutions where none previously existed
To achieve organizational greatness
An ambitious goal and vision to be sure, but a worthy cause I believe. I encourage you to formulate your vision, blue sky it, then write it down and develop a plan of action. BTW, I’m actively recruiting advocates to help spread the word and make my vision a reality. I’m doing it in my work with clients, my volunteer efforts, and doing my best to get it “viral”. So feel free to join in!
The words of Nelson Mandela sum it up, “There is no passion to be found in playing small – in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.”
